Most modem automobiles are crowded in the engine compartment, and therefore require numerous components to be removed and replaced whenever routine maintenance is performed. In addition, and due to this crowding, air induction components are often scattered about the engine compartment. To connect these scattered air induction components, conduits are provided to conduct air throughout the engine compartment.
Due to the crowding, these conduits often must have complex profiles, permitting them to fit around and between the other components. For this reason, plastics such as nylon are often used to make the conduits since these materials permit the molding of complex shapes and are also highly resistant to the elevated temperatures in the engine compartments. These shapes, however, are typically not molded as single pieces, but are assembled from conduit subcomponents due to the difficulty in molding them as a single unit.
As a result, the subcomponents have numerous joints whereby they are coupled. These joints must be air tight to prevent air leaks, yet must also be readily assembled and disassembled whenever repairs or periodic maintenance is required. Screwed or clamped joints suffer from several disadvantages in this environment. They can be overtightened, causing the plastic conduits to warp and fatigue. This can cause air leaks which in turn cause the engine to run poorly.
Furthermore, because of the underhood crowding, these joints often require additional parts such as screws and clamps that are difficult to orient and support during assembly, thus increasing the risk that they will be dropped and lost.
What is needed, therefore, is an improved conduit coupling that can be quickly and easily removed. What is further needed is a coupling that does not require additional parts, but is formed integrally with the conduits themselves. It is an object of this invention to provide such a conduit coupling.